A KOGANCLE ROV A

HLL STARTED INTO LIFE AT TS

the ends of the cha-arms ; and his pale face lighted up with some mward passion that he was trying hard to conceal.

At this moment the door suddenly openced and a lady entered, but visibly started and drew back as she observed me, and looking at Mr. Trelawney she stammered @~

“1 1 beg your pardon, but T didnt know you had anyonc with you.”

“This 15 a gentleman from London- -Mr. Donovan,” he exclaimed, as he sprang to his feet: and then mtroducing her to me he added Ny sister, siry Miss Bertha re- lawney.”

I bowed and she bowed, She was dressed m blaclk s her white hair was neatly arranged beneath a cap: but her face, hke her brother's, was pale and hined with thought and care. She scemed greatly agitated and suffering from nervous tremor, and Towas surc that she regarded me with mixed fechngs ol anxiety and fear. 1 watched her narrowly, and saw her exchange looks with her brother.

“Ind you wish to spcak to me? "asked her brother, apparently with the object of cutting short the mterview.,

“Ves,” came the answer i low and, asking me to excuse him for o few minutes, Mr. Trelawney and his sister went out ol the room.

In about ten minutes he returned, and he too scemed agitated.

“When my sister entered,” he began as he resumed his seat, 1 was about to tell you that thc discovery of defalcations and the loss of the register 1s as much a revelation to me as it is to anyone. There s one thing I think that T may mention, and 1 do 1t with all reserve. But it is perhaps better

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that the mfor- mation should come from me than from any- onc else. Ab- out two years ago - 1t may be two and a half| [ am not quite clear on the subject— 1 placed a gentle- man 1n the concern as - a confidential clerk. His name was Da- vid Brinsley. [Te was the son of an old Imend ol nnne, who went out to Austraha long

ago, and died there. David, who had been partly brought up in the colonies, came to Ingland after his father's death

and sought me out. As he brought ex- cellent testimonials, T had no hesitation 1n giving him a position of trust. "T'hree months ago he was taken suddenly ill, and was dead i a few days. T remember now that 1t was immediately after David's death that T heard something about the register being missing.”

“This s aremarkablestory, Mr. Trelawney,” [ remarked, pointedly.

“Heaven forbid)” he exclamed, exertedly, “that Tshould cast aspersions on the charac- ter of a dead many bhut I mention the meident tor what ot s worth, Tois for vou to make such mquiries as vou think the matter deserves.”

Cortamly,” Lanswered, moa way intended to sugeest that T did not think very much about the matter: bhut the truth was, 1 was morally certain T had got hold of the key to the mystery.

As T did not see that any object was to be sceived by iy prolonging the mterview then, [ took my departure after o few casual ques- tions bearing on the death of David Brinsley. As T left the steps and was crossing the lawn, 1 turned and looked at the house, and saw at the curtained window of a side room the deathly- white face of a woman, who scemed to be olaring at me. Directly she saw that she was obscrved, she dropped the curtain which she had been holding aside with her hand, and hurriedly withdrew. This trivial - incident was not without its significance for me, and I began to weave out a theory as 1T pursued my wav to Liverpool.